Comments: David Cameron said immigration is a constant drain on Britain and the nation had suffered a 'frightening' decade of 'lax' border policies

Immigration is a ‘constant drain’ on public services in Britain, David Cameron conceded yesterday.

The Prime Minister said Britain had suffered a ‘frightening’ decade of ‘completely lax’ border policies, which had placed huge strain on communities.

And he hinted at further measures to cut the number of people arriving in the UK.

His comments come after the Office for Budget Responsibility warned Britain would need millions more immigrants in the coming decades to offset the effects of an ageing population.

But Mr Cameron made clear yesterday that he wants to accelerate progress towards meeting his pledge to slash annual net migration – the number by which the population grows after both immigration and emigration have been counted – to the ‘tens of thousands’.

During a question and answer session with workers at the headquarters of Bentley Motors in Crewe, Mr Cameron was asked why Britain lets in immigrants who are a ‘constant drain’ while others ‘work hard’.

He replied: ‘I basically agree with you. There are some benefits from being a country that welcomes people who want to come here and work hard.

‘But in the last decade we have had an immigration policy that’s completely lax. The pressure it puts on our public services and communities is too great.’

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Mr Cameron said the Government has capped the number of migrants from outside the European Union by cracking down on bogus colleges.

He also highlighted action to reduce the so-called ‘pull factors’ that attract people to this country, such as restricting access to benefits and the NHS.

Agreement: Mr Cameron made his comments in response to a question posed during a Q&A session at the Bentley factory in Crewe

But he added: ‘I want to see it [net migration] coming down faster.

‘On housing, health, education and legal aid we are showing we are not a soft touch.

‘By the end of this Government, we will be able to look back and say we may not have sorted out the whole problem, but we have got a much tougher approach to immigration that’s fair.’

In the run-up to the 2010 election Mr Cameron pledged to cut net migration by more than a half, from more than 200,000 a year to the ‘tens of thousands’.

Progress in reducing the numbers has been frustrated by resistance from the Liberal Democrats and by the difficulty of limiting immigration from the EU.

Last year the net number of immigrants dropped by 89,000 to 153,000. Net migration is the number by which the population goes up after immigration and emigration are counted.

But the fall was accompanied by warnings that limiting immigration could harm Britain’s economy in the long-term.

Earlier this month, an OBR report warned an extra seven million migrants would be needed over the next 50 years to balance the effects of an ageing population.

The figure is equal to 140,000 migrants per year.

The report concluded that without a fresh wave of immigration to boost employment and tax receipts, Britain’s public finances could become ‘unsustainable’.

The OBR’s analysis suggests that Britain’s borrowing as a proportion of GDP would rise to 99 per cent if there is a steady flow of immigrants. But if there was a complete ban on immigrants, borrowing would rise to 174 per cent of GDP.